Sushant Singh Rajput case: CBI to conduct psychological autopsy | What it entails

 The CBI has begun probing the death of Sushant Singh Rajput. Having taken over the investigation, the agency has also had to work its way through the investigations conducted so far. While the nation has been demanding justice for the actor, a lot of the story is still hidden from the public eye.

According to a report in NDTV, sources in the CBI have said that a psychological autopsy will be conducted on the actor. This is a postmortem procedure often used to determine the mental health of a victim in the event of a suicide. It is also meant to assess risk factors and the like through comprehensive data. 

What is psychological autopsy?

Sushant Singh Rajput's death left the nation stunned. After much back and forth, and public pressure the CBI was brought in to investigate the case. The case has been subject to much speculation and rumour-mongering. People believe there's more to it than meets the eye.

Now, according to media reports, the CBI will be conducting a psychological autopsy of the actor. The probe, NDTV reported will be conducted by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL). This will entail looking at all the aspects of Sushant Singh Rajput's life as well as his psychological profile. 

A psychological autopsy is markedly different from the physical autopsy the public understands. A Psychological Autopsy is defined by the American Psychological Association (APA) as:

An analysis that is conducted following a person's death to reconstruct his or her mental state prior to dying. Psychological autopsies are often performed when a death occurs in a complex, ambiguous, or equivocal (unexplained) manner to determine if the death was the result of natural causes, accident, homicide, or suicide. Attention is given to the total course of the individual's life to ascertain the facts, motivations, and meanings associated with the death. Also called equivocal death analysis; reconstructive psychological evaluation. [pioneered in the 1970s by U.S. psychologists Edwin S. Shneidman and Norman L. Farberow and medical examiner Theodore J. Murphy at the Los Angeles Suicide Prevention Center]"- APA Dictionary of Psychology

According to the reports, this will include looking at the Bollywood actor's WhatsApp messages, his diaries, his relationships, and assess his behavioural patterns as well. It will also mean speaking to all those close to him, his psychiatrist and medical records as well. 

A Psychological Autopsy takes time, and for more accuracy and careful examination, no doubt there would have to be more time devoted to it. James L Knoll, IV, MD in a piece titled, 'The Psychological Autopsy, Part I: Application and Methods' in the Journal of Psychiatric Practice writes:

"In addition to reviewing records, structured interviews with family members, relatives, and/or friends are necessary. Thus, a PA synthesizes data from multiple informants and
records. When performed in a comprehensive manner, the method may take anywhere from 20–50 hours or longer to complete."- James L. Knoll in Journal of Psychiatric Practice (2008), Vol. 14, No. 6, pg. 395.

Suicide is a sensitive matter, and mental health plays a huge part in the conversation around it. While Sushant Singh Rajput's death has become a large debate with multiple factors, what's been missing is a comprehensive picture of what happened. 

With the Psychological Autopsy, the CBI may be able to piece together a clearer picture of what went on with Sushant before his death if they are going ahead with it as reports say that the investigative agency will. But, no method is full proof and even in this method according to academic research, ethics and issues related to bias may affect the results of a Psychological Autopsy. 

As of now, with so much going on in this case, it's hard to ascertain reality, and the media has a role to play in that.  The news of Sushant Singh Rajput has left numerous unanswered questions. Amid the speculation, the authorities also have the burden of providing these answers. That's no mean feat.